Metal-screw machine



(No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 1. F. & A. B. CURTIS. METAL SCREW MACHINE.

No. 280,296. PatentedJune' 26, 1883.

wzg/n, ya A@ Y@ 7 7gg-ig@ N. Pneus, Pmuuwgnpher. wmangwn, n. c.

('No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 2.

F. su' A. B. CURTIS.

"METAL SCREW MACHINE.

No. 280,296. l Patented June 26, 1883.

N4 PETERS. minimum. wnhiugtm D, C.

(ilo Model.) 5 Sheets-.Sheet 3Q F. 8v A. B. CURTIS.

METAL SCREW MAHINE.

Patented June Z6', 1883.

(No Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 4. F. 8u A.l B. CURTIS. METAL SCREW MACHINE.

Patented June 26, 1883.

C: w O 111111111111111 N, PETERS, Phowmmgnpher. wnsmnglun. at;

m (N0 Model.) 5 Sheets-Sheet 5.

P. an AfB. CURTIS.

METAL SCREW MAGHINE. I No. 280,296. Y Patented Jlme 26. 1883.

UNiTEn 4STATES PATENT FFICE.

FRANCIS CURTIS ANI) ALIRT CURTIS, OF CHICOPEE, MASSACHUSETTS.

vIVI'ETAL-SC REW IVI'ACHINE.

ASIPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 280,296, dated June26` 1883.

` Application filed January Sl, 1883. iNo model.)

machine, as will hereinafter be more fully set.

forth.

In the drawings, Figure I is a plan View of the top of the machine. Fig.Il is an elevationv of one side of the machine, showing a portion of thesame. Fig. III is an, elevation of the other side, showing a partthereof. Fig.

` IV is an elevation of one of the ends of 4the machine. of thetool-holders.

are detail views of parts of the mechanism.

Fig. IX is an enlargedlongitudinal section of the chuck-spindle, andFigs. X, XI, XII, and XIII are detail views of the same.

M is the frame of the machine, constructed in any suitable 'Way toafford the required bearings for all of the movable portions of itsmechanism. 4

Power is applied through a belt to the pulley m upon spindle J, and fromthe pulley m. is, through belt o, carried to shaft o, and from thenceis, through the gear n, transmitted, through worm n and gear p, to thecam-bearing shaft N.' The pulley my, forms part of or is intimatelyconnected to a gear-wheel, Z, and both are axially intersected by thespindle J. The spindle J, through which the wire is fed,Y and in whichit is held to be operated upon by forming-tools, has journals above thelbed of the machine at j j., The spindle J, besides bearing the hubbedgear Z, bears also the gear 7c.

Between the shaft o and spindle J is acounter-shaft, i', supported inbearings from the bed of the machine, and this counter-shaft is`provided with the gears h and g. The gear g is engaged with theconstantly-revolving gear Z, and the gear 11 through the intermediategear, i, with the gear Both gears Z land k are loose upon the spindle J,and are provided upon their inner and opposite faces with clutch-studs Zand 7c.

y Intermediate these gears, and splined to the spindle, is theclutch-wheel f, which is automatically moved to alternately fix one orthe other of gears l k to the spindle, and it will be seen that thegearl either directly revolves the spindle, when fast to it, orindirectly, through the countershaft and in a reverse direction, whenrunning loose upon it. f

The spindle J is transversely slotted from `side to side, and in thisslot e move, with their holder, and also vibrate on their hingesradially to the axis of the holder, the jaws l/ of feed clamp d. Thisismore particularlyillustrated Y,in the enlarged views, Figs. IX and X,show `ing the jaw-holder d sleeved upon the spindle and adapted to beautomatically reciprocated thereupon to have the feeding-jaws d movetherein. The feeding-jaws d extend inward and meet upon opposite sidesof the wire to be fed, and, being each hinged to the holdereccentrically to its longer axis, swing freely in 011e direction, whilethey firmly clamp an intermediate rod acting to move them in theopposite direction.

Interposed springs el, as shown, cause the clamp ends to oppose eachother with a force insufficient'to offer an obstacle to the movement ofthe jaws over the wire when held by the chuck at the end of the spindle,but enough to causerthe jaws to act instantly when the holder is movedin the direction to feed the wire to the chuck.

' The chuck (shown more fully in the enlarged their outside a journalfsurfaee for thechuek inv its bearings from the frame M. Thejaw-arms c in their grooves extend beneath a conical sleeve, b, a guide,b, for jaw-moving levers 13", and an adjustable collar, b, which servesas .a fulcrum for levers b, and the varms c receive the hookends of thelevers b, which levers are arranged to have their heads above theirhooks bear against the near wall of the collar bf, so that when the freeends of levers b in IOO v a line with the outer surface of the spindleare viding a means of returning them to the proper' position when thechuck is opened, the jaws c are provided with transverse grooves c, intowhich hook ends c of arms c', by means of which both a longitudinal andtransverse movement is permitted the jaws. The collar b is made to screwupon the outside of the spindle,

so that its position may be adjusted relatively to the-heads of thelevers bf, to cause, by. a greater or less interval between the twosurfaces, more or less movement to the jaws. The levers b are guided intheir rise or fall by slots in part b, and springs b* bear against themfrom the outside to bring their free ends against the spindle, and soreturn the arms c to open the jaws c. rIhe springs b* are received in acounterbore in the ends ofscrews b5, and by running in the screws thepressure upon the levers b may be increased, while-one may be quicklyreplaced by removing the screw holding it. The jaws c are provided withanges c5, overlapping theslots vin the head of the chuck in which-theymove, as seen in Fig. XIII, by means of which they are prevented fromfalling when not supported by the stock within the chuck.

The worm n, through worm-wheel p, rotates shaft N, extending from end toend of the frame M, and upon shaft N are all of the cams governing theautomatic operations upon the wire from the moment of its introductionto the rotary spindle J until the iinished screw is deposited. As seenin Figs. I and II, cam E, through hinged lever E,`moves clutch-collar fto make either gear Zor k fast with the spindle. Cam B, through leverB', moves the clamp` d to feed the wire, and cam A, through leverA,-moves the cone-sleeve b to close or release the chuck.

The main tool-holder H is constructed as follows: Two disks or segmentsof disks, H

H, are secured to a shaft, H, parallel to the spindle J, and supportedinl bearings 2 2 from the bed or frame o'f the machine. These disks areframed together and fixed to the shaft H,

' and in corresponding holes therethrough, and

other convenient means of engagement with a swinging'lever, C, adaptedtotbe' caught. by said lever only when opposite the spindle, and has acoil-spring to return it whenreleased from said lever.

In practice the collars Q have an arm guided and `supported between`rodsv Q, extending from end to end of the holder, which serve not onlyto steady them, but to keep in one position forked ends adapted to moveover a stud upon the end of lever C, as shown in Fig. I. AThe shaft H isprolonged outside of the frame M, and is provided with a pinion, G, andupon the extreme end has also apulley, I. The pinion G engages with anupright rack, G, guided in theframc, and having its lower end restingupon the perimeter. of cam-wheel D, so that, being lifted by saidcam-wheel, it revolves theholder H, through the pinion G, to a degreedetermined by the cam.

Attached to and extending over the pulleyV P is apbelt, Pv, connected atits lower end to a coil-spring, P, attached in its turn atene end to afixed point ofthe machine, so that when the rack andpinion are releasedby the cam D the pulley is revolved to lower the rack and` return theholder H. The cam-wheel D is so formed, as shown in Fig. IV, as tosuccessively bring each tool-stem into line with the axis of `thespindle J, and afterward to permit the pulley P and its connections toquickly return the holder H to its starting-point.

Vithout a departure from the spirit of this invention the peculiarlyconstructed and arranged tool-holder H may be returned by a cam and rackacting upon a duplicate pinion, or in any equivalent manner. One of theends or disks of the holder H is provided upon its perimeter with aseries of notches, a,

ated by the lever .to release the holder to permit its revolvingVmovement.

. In Fig. I the bolt a is shown pressed forward by its spring c in thedirection of the notches a in the front disk, H, of the holder, `andengaging, by means of a stud, lr,.with the link r', secured to le'ver C.The stud is re- ;eeived in an elongated slot in link, o, adapted topermit the link to reciprocate with the stem-moving lever and retractthe bolt a to release the holder H only in time for its movement. Atother times its spring bears the end of the bolt against the inner faceof disk H'to instantly Ashoot .it into a notch, af, when thecorresponding tool-stein is in exact position relative tothe. spindle J.v

In Figs. .-I and II are shown the cam C for .moving the tool oppositethe spindle, and the ,lever C', having means for engaging with thecollars on the tool-stems.

In holder H is rshown the last tool operating. upon the screw, and themechanism connected TOO IIO

therewith. This is shown more fully in the longitudinal section, Fig.VI. A hollow stem, 3, provided with means to return it from the spindleand to cause it to be engaged with lever C', is formed into aspring-chuck at one end, and provided internally with avspring-plunger,s'. The front end of the plunger is pressed by its spring against. theend of the screw within the spring-chuck, and the rear end projectedbeyoud the stem s.

A head, R, moving in line with stem s, has a spring plunger-head, t, ina bore thereof, the surrounding wall of said bore being adapted to bearupon the en d of stem s, while the plunger-head tcomes against theprojecting plunger s. As the head R moves toward the stem 's from theposition seen` in Fig. I, the head first brings the inner end of plungers" against the screw carried by the spring-chuck, when, being rigidlyheld, the continued advancement of head R forces the projecting portionof stem s/ into head R', compressing the spring supporting the plunger-head t. Finally,

the head R moves the stem s to relax the grip v of the spring-chuck,when the springy under head t causes the plunger s to eject the screw.The spring of the plunger s is only of strength enough to return theplunger s to the posi-l tion shown in Fig. I. The head R is secured to arod, R', splined or otherwise guided to move without rotation in theframe M, and is connected to an arm, S, from a rock-shaft, S, hung inbearings in the frame, and moved by an arm, S, acted upon by cam-wheel Cin its revolution, and, as shown, a spring, S, effects the return ofhead R when the arm S is released by "cam C.

The nicking-tool T is attached to a vertical shaft journaled in aswinging frame, T, as shown in Figs. Iand III. The frame T furnishesbearings for the horizontal shaft T, having the gears U and U, the gearU engaging with the gear u on the saw-shaft, and the gear U constantlyor intermittently engaging with the constantly-revolvingl gear 7L uponthe counter-shaft The frame T is hinged at or near one end, at v, tothebed of the machine, to'move smoothly over the same whenswung, and isswung by cam I, through lever I, hinged centrally to-frame M, tohave itsends bear upon cam I and surface of frame T. of the machine, returns theframe-Twhen re leased by cam I. The gear U may be con-` stantly engagedwith gear l1, or may lniesh with it upon the swinging of the 'frame T.-

The cutting-off tool is supported from the.. framevMto reciprocate in ahorizontal plane* transversely to the axis of the spindle J and its stem'w has the spring w to retract it in its bearings. l

Beneaththe stem w, and parallel thereto, is

the stem V, held from rotating; in the bed or frame M, provided upon itsouter end withthearm V', and surrounded by a coil-spring inter- Aspring, o, from frame Tto the body end of stemV is longitudinallyslotted to receive the end of a flat wedge, W, which moves in a verticalplane. The wedge W slides in a guide and support NV', rigid with andpendent from the frame M, and provision is made forits elevation to anydesired degree through the bed ofthe machine. The free surface of thewedge, in its upward movement, coming `against one end of the slotinstem V, slides the stem-td, ward the spindle, and the arm V, comingagainst the projecting end of stem iv, 'car-A ries its tool against thescrew in the spindlechuck. The wedge W has a stud upon its side inp'osition'to be acted upon by the cam F, and has also a coil-spring, w',attached at one end to the guide-piece XV', which serves towithdraw thewedge and permit the springs of the stems w and V to retract them. Thisis more particularly shown in the detail, Fig. VII, where one end oftheslot in stem V is formed of around pin, (seen in this'view in sectiom)machine, as clearly shown in Fig. II, which rack is acted upon by camson wheel L, and positively revolves the holderK to bring suc- IOO Thepinion X rests -upon a rack', a", supported by thebed of the cessivetools in position to be brought by stem V against the stock in thespindle-chuck. The holder K, arranged as shown in Fig. IV, can be formedof two sides framed together to afford bearings for the differenttool-stems, which sides may consist of a circle, or` of any partrequired to seat the desired tools, and to insure sufficient stiffnessto the tools thus borne in a IIO holder outside of the frame-support ablock,

Y, from the machine-bed presents a surface, y, of configurationcorresponding to that of the tool-holders of the stems in- `holder K, sothat when the tool is operating it is rigidly supported andall jumpingor chatteringisavoided. This is shown inFigs. I and Il.

In the elevation views, Figs, Il, III, and IV, only so much of themachine'is shown 'in' each as is considered necessary to illustrate theinvention as a whole.

The consecutive operations of the mechan- Aism above'described in themanufacture of metal screws is as follows: "The stock being in thespindle and thechuck open, cam-wheelB causes a given lengtlrof the wirevto be fed into f position, and cam-wheel A closes the chuck to gripthewire. After thechuck is closed, camwheel C- advances the sliding stemin holder H, and a box-tool on said stem turns down the wire projectingfrom the chuck. The continued revolution of cam-wheel C returns thcsliding tool-stein into position and simultaneously operates to releasethe tool-hol der H. TWheny holder H is released, cam-wheel D raises thevertical rack G to revolve the hol der H to bring the next tool or diein position, the die being carried forward in turn to cut the thread.

Then the thread is cut, cam-wheel E throws the clutch-slide j" into thereversing-gear, and when the screw is run out ofthe di e, cam-wheel Ethrows slide j' back again to give a forward rotation to the 'spindle J,Meanwhile camwheel D turns the holder H to bring the removing-tool uponstem s into alignment with the threaded screw in the spindle. Vhileholder H is taking abovementioned position, the cam-wheel F throws thecutting-off tool into operation. During the advancement ofthecutting-off tool the removing-tool is brought forward to loosely inclosethe screw in its spring-chuck, and as soon as eut off, the action ofcam-wheel C retract-s stem s, taking the screw with it, tightens thechuck, and also, by with.- drawing the locking-bolt, permits holder H tobe returned to its primary position. At this time the first operationabove enumerated. recommences at the spindle, and while camwheel C ismoving forward the first box-tool, cam-wheel I swings the nicking-sawpast the screw in position to be nieked, and while the first box-tool isstill moving forward, the plunger in stem s is brought into operation,as bel'ore described, to eject the completed screw.

To make a thumb-screw, when a box-tool and die may be'sufiicient inholder H, toolholder K holding the headshaping tools, and

being in position to perform the first opera tion upon the head of thescrew in the spindle, canrwheel F moves forward the first tool. Thencam-wheel L revolves the holder K to bring the next tool in place'. lnturn this second. tool, which may be\a milling-tool, is advanced. Thecam-wheel F, as in case of all of the other cam-wheels, may haveadjustable 'cam-blocks t0 govern the movements of as many tools asrequired, and it requires no more than general skill to adjust thesecam-blocks' to the class of screw to be made.

Now, having described our invention, what we claim is- 1. Astock-feeding spindle having a transverse sl ot extendin therethrough,and a sleeve, d, adapted toA be automaticallyr slid upon the spindleover said slot, and carry with it spring feeding-jaws d', hinged theretoto bear upon opposite sides of the stock and vibrate in saids slot,substantially as shown and described.

2. A spindle, J, having a conical cap, c, and slotted jaw-holder, jaws cc, and jaw-arms c c, connected to permit the jaws to move radially aswell as parallel tothe axis -of the spindle, levers b, hooked tojaw-arms cf c to swing upon their rear ends or heads, a collar,

b, adjustable upon the spindl e, and having its vertical face form afulcruni for'the rear ends of levers b, a guide, b, arranged upon thespindle to guide the levers b while vibrating from or toward the axis ofthe spindle, and provided with springs for depressing the ends of saidlevers, and a conical sleeve, I), arranged upon the spindle, and meansto reciprocate it to vibrate the levers b, as shown and described.

3. The combination of spindle J, cap c, and slotted jaw-holder with jawsc and arms c', connected thereto, bearing b, adjustable upon thespindle, levers b, arranged to have one end bear against collar b, theirother in path of cone-sleeve b, and hooked to jaw-arms c at a pointintermediate their ends, lever-guide b, springs Z1 and their adjustableholders b5, and cone-sleeve b, with means for reciprocating it, allarranged to operate as and for'the'purpose set forth.

4. yThe tool holder H, consisting of the pieces H H, framed together andto a journaled axis, H, two or more tool-stems seated in the ends H H,provided with. retractingsprings, and means, as Q, for engaging with avibrating lever when in line with the spindle, and aspring-actuatedlocking-bolt, a, adapted to lock the holder as each toolcomes in position and release it after the tool has been withdrawn,substantially as shown and described.

5. The combination, with the oscillating holder H, having sockets a,arranged in the end H, in number and position relative to thetool-stems, as shown, the spring-bolt a', in bearings in the frame M,and the slotted link r, connected to the bolt a and to the tool-drivingarm or lever, and adapted to engage with the bolt during the backwardmovement of the lever. y

6. The combination, with a spring chuck adapted to reciprocate in atool-holder, and having a spring-plunger with a rearward-projectingend,of a head, R, splined to the frame M, having an elastic surface oppositethe plunger, inclosed by a rigid surface opposite the stem of thecollet, and automatically reciprocated to come against both to releasethe screw from the spring-chuck and eject it, substantially as shown anddescribed.

7. The combination of rock-shaft S, having arm S, with means for rockingit, and arm S, head R, having stem R, engaged with arm S, and having inits face the elastic bearing t, and the spring-chuck having theprojecting plungerstem s, all arranged to operate substantially as shownand described.

. S. Aframe, T', resting on the bed of themachine, and hinged at one endthereto, two geared shafts hung inv said frame at right angles to eachother, one provided with a nicking-saw, T, andthe other with a gear nearthe frame-hinge, engaged with a gear j ournaled to and revolving in theframe M, and means, substantially as shown, to automatically swing theframe T to'and from Ythe screw held in IOO IIO

track of the saw, all combined and arranged substantially as set forth.

9. The combination of frame T', hinged at o, and having saw T anddriving-shaft T", and .5 gears u, U, and U', spring n', lever I', andcam I, all arranged to operate in the manner and for the purpose setforth. n 10. A stem, V, arranged in the frame M to reciprocate thereinWithout rotating, and to eX- Io tend beyond the outside of the frame,andprovided with an arin upon its outer end, and with a retracting spring,a tool stem supported Without the frame M, and adapted to reciprocateatright angles to the spindle and have its 15 outer end in contact withthe arm, a Wedge supported by and free to slide inthe frame M, havingone end passing through a` vertical slot in stern V, and mechanism,`substantially as shown,for automatically reciprocating the slid- 2o ingWedge, combined/and operating substantially as shown, and for thepurpose described.

11. A pinion, X', a pinion-shaft, X, in bearings in the frame M, atright angles to the axis of the spindle, a tool-stem support, K,securedy to shaft X, and seating tool-stems at a radial distance fromshaft X equal to the distance of the axis of the spindle therefrom, arack, w, to

holder K. 1

FRANCIS CURTIS. ALBERT B. CURTIS. Witnesses:

R. F. HYDE,

WM. H. CHAPIN.

